


Left Behind in the Shadows

by 13SapphireStars13



Category: Descendants (Disney Movies)
Genre: All characters except Carlos are just mentioned really, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Carlos wasn't chosen, Carlos-centric, Slightly Dark Carlos
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-09
Updated: 2017-08-09
Packaged: 2018-12-13 03:48:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,721
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11751399
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/13SapphireStars13/pseuds/13SapphireStars13
Summary: Ben is unable to bring all four of the Rotten Four to Auradon. He can only bring over the three worst of worst, Evie, Mal, and Jay, for his first proclamation. Carlos is left behind and broken when his friends forget about him.*8/12/17 - Title up, no longer untitled





	Left Behind in the Shadows

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! So I read a fic that was like 'What if Carlos wasn't brought with the rest of the Core Four' that was based on a prompt, and I was just like where's the angry Carlos who uses his genius and his anger to make sure no one takes advantage of him? Which idk if this even fits into what I wanted it to be, but I thought I'd post because I might finish my other Descendants stuff and I wanted to get back into writing these characters.  
> Please note that this was written a tad rambling without much of a idea where I was going.

Carlos is left behind, holding onto the promises the other three made that they’d be back. They’d get Fairy Godmother’s Wand, and not only would their parents be free but so would he. He holds onto those promises as they fail to get the wand.

But the coronation comes and goes, and Carlos is still on the Isle, slave to his mother. The other three have forgotten him in their journey to be good. Carlos takes this betrayal and uses it to change himself. He devotes himself to evil for the first time in his life, hating himself for doing. He may be small but he’s smart. His experiments take a sadistic turn, and soon no one dares to come near the de Vil boy.

 His mother still treats him like a personal servant, too lost in her delusions and insanity to see the dark change in her son, but Carlos uses her delusions against her to trick her. He’s not innocent, and he won’t be taken advantage of again. Even if that means destroying others.

As the first anniversary of Ben’s kingship comes closer, Mal runs back to the Isle. The rest of her good-two-shows gang follows her. Carlos hears this, and nearly burns down his treehouse in rage. The group searches for Mal, and Carlos follows them. He scoffs at their failure to stay under the radar. What did they expect bringing the king of Auradon here with the beast stamped all over his outfit?

Carlos sees Harry Hook about to sweep in to kidnap Ben, having been informed by Gil of the group’s arrival, and detaches himself from the shadows to stop him. Harry’s wharf rats trip over themselves to get away, causing a loud enough ruckus that half the Isle probably heard them. His two Dalmatians at his side, growling. He ignores Evie’s gasp as he puts himself between Harry and Ben.

“Well, the Devil of Hell Hall has elected to join us.” Harry smirks, and Carlos keeps his face blank, noting that Mal has stepped out onto her balcony and can see them. “Heard any new voices?”

“Hello Harry. Bit inland for a wharf rat isn’t it.” Carlos phrases it like a question, but it isn’t.

“Oh, I can still hear the sea.” Harry twirls his hook, taking a step back.

“I’m sure you can.” Carlos says. “Now scurry back to your sorry excuse for a ship, and tell Uma that if I find any more wharf rats in my territory, I won’t be as gracious as I’m being right now.”

Harry glances down at Laurie and Frieda, his Dalmatians, weighing his options. After a moment, Harry turns back towards the shadows.

“Don’t forget how you got this territory, de Vil.” Harry calls over his shoulder. “It certainly wasn’t from rescuing do-gooders and kings.” With that he headed towards the wharf.

Carlos turns towards the group behind him. He glares at them as Laurie and Frieda leave his side. They sniff around, scaring away anyone that shouldn’t overhear this conversation before returning to his side. They sit on either side of him, growling, and he draws strength from his anger before speaking.

“You’re all idiots. Including you Mal.” Carlos calls up, surprising her. He doesn’t look up as she starts to descend the staircase. “You aren’t villains. Get off this island before something bad happens. I stopped Harry from nabbing your king, but that’s the only help your gonna get from me or anyone else. I don’t care why you’re here, but whatever it is that brought you back, get it done and never come back.”

Carlos turns heads back into the shadows. Laurie and Frieda stopping anyone from following him. He heads back for Hell Hall. His mother is home, but he’d can’t face those backstabbers anymore.

Time passes slowly on the Isle, but gossip is passed around faster than alcohol here. It doesn’t take long before he hears that Mal has gone back to the mainland with Ben, Evie, and Jay. It takes even less time for him to hear about little Dizzy Tremaine being brought to Auradon, and he can’t stop himself from feeling another stab to the heart. He can’t help but feel betrayed again.

Dizzy deserves it though. The little girl was never meant to grow up here. She’s too good to survive long, and he’s happy someone’s off, even if it isn’t him.

Gil’s the next one to be brought over, and that day is one to remember. Harry Hook and Uma tear apart the island looking for Gil, but they never find him. Uma tries to ram her ship into the barrier, but ends destroying even more of the decrepit ship. Carlos laughs when he hears, surprising Laura and Frieda with the noise. He hasn’t laughed since he first got them and gotten over his fear of dogs.

Gil’s an idiot, but he’s a well-meaning idiot. Maybe he’ll finally get over his all-consuming crush on Uma and Harry now. The other two don’t deserve him, especially with the way they treat him. So, Carlos is glad for him too.

Freddie Facilier gets brought to Auradon next, and Carlos laughs once again imagining all of the chaos she’ll wreck. But, he also knows that she’ll choose to be good eventually. Once she’s finished wreaking havoc.

It’s a surprise to everyone when Harry Hook and Uma are the next ones brought to Auradon. Clearly Gil’s handiwork. They’re the first to not be taken alone, and that has everyone in a buzz.

Their absence leaves an open territory that quickly becomes Carlos’s. He takes over Uma’s ship, but lets her old crew still live there so long as they enforce his rule. The arrangement works quite nicely for everyone. He’s not sure he enjoys having this power over people, but he can’t refuse it without seeming weak.

Slowly more and more are brought over to Auradon, and Carlos is the only main villain child left on the Isle. Sure, there are a still a lot of henchmen and women’s children left on the Isle, but Carlos is the only one with a true villain as a parent left. He takes advantage of this. Pretty soon the island answers to him. None of the adults are strong stop him, even Maleficent.

His anger overtakes him, as does his jealousy, and he festers in it. He uses his anger and jealousy as fuel as he works on the one thing he desperately wants. Revenge.

His machine is barely functional, but it will do its job. Every part of his plan is thought out and planned out with a million backup plans just in case. He packs a bag and waits for another pick up of children. He doesn’t have to wait long, barely a week. When the barrier is down, Carlos turns on his machine. A hole is left open, barely big enough for his boat and his dogs, but they all make it out.

The boat brings them to a small cove on the coast, and Carlos sneaks in during the night with Laurie and Frieda with him. He makes his way to the Museum near Auradon Prep. He watches the security team for a few days, learning the system and the guards.

A week after his arrival in Auradon, he breaks into the museum at night. He dismantles the security system, an incredibly archaic system built by goody two shoes that don’t expect anyone to break in. Idiots.

Carlos finds them almost immediately. Apparently, the Heroes think displaying them will make it look less like stolen property. Sorry, ‘confiscated’ property.

Carlos is able to open the case they’re in relatively easily, there’s not even a security field or other alarm on them. No one thought anyone would want to steal them apparently.

They’re beautiful, and he feels an old anger boiling up in him. These belong to the VK’s, and the Heroes denied them that. Denied them a lot of things.

The Birthright Jewels are something Carlos hadn’t even known existed until his mother, lost in one of her delusions, screamed at the injustice of it. Screamed that the Heroes were worried that the Jewels would lead to their demise. Carlos had spent months searching for any information he could find on the Jewels. He’d learned all of the old lore about them, how combined they could create a magical force that no one could defeat.

His mother had described his in extreme detail, and Carlos had memorized that. He had a round jewel a dark black that his mother said reminded her of a Dalmatian spot. Carlos grabbed his, stuffing it into his bag before ducking out of the display case and heading for an exit.

He was almost out of the museum when he saw his mother’s car. She loved that car, and Carlos felt a deep need to take it with him. Technically it was his property, so he had almost every right to take it. So, he did. Luckily the keys were in the glovebox and there was gas in the tank. He launched the thing threw a ground level window, destroying the front bumper, and drove out into the night.

He doesn’t want to create a magical force to destroy Auradon. He just wants to live somewhere he can be himself. He’s not a leader, not a villain, and certainly not a hero. But, he thinks that he could maybe be normal. Given the chance.

His anger is still there, and occasionally he’ll get so angry that he breaks something. But, he’s also happy. He’s away from the Isle, away from his mother, and away from his old friends. He has a small house with room for his inventions and experiments, which are no longer built to make other fear him but to make him happy.

Mal marries Ben, and the entire kingdom celebrates. Everyone except Carlos. He had missed the initial announcement and hadn’t cared to learn when the wedding was. He’s in the middle of wiring a new robot when Ben and Mal say their ‘I do’s.

All of the VK’s are happy, including him. And, yes, sometimes he does wonder what would have happened if he’d been brought to Auradon initially. But, he always dismisses the thought. He’s happy.

Why think about what ifs?

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry for an OOCness or grammatical errors, those are all my fault. Please comment if any characterization is terribly heinous.


End file.
